1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a rack unloader and more particularly to an unloader for removing rows of sausage sticks from a rack.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Sausages, such as pepperoni sausages, are formed in a stuffing operation in which the sausage emulsion is stuffed into a casing. The sausage stuffed casings are then clipped, smoked and further processed until the sausages are completely formed. After the sausages are formed, the casing is often removed to permit slicing of the sausage sticks for sale to consumers or institutions. Removal of the casing from the sausage sticks may be accomplished in a manual operation. However, such an operation is both time consuming and labor intensive. U.S. Pat. No. 4,682,387 discloses a mechanical method and apparatus for removing casings from sausage sticks. Further, my copending application Ser. No. 09/167,386 entitled xe2x80x9cMethod and Apparatus for Stripping Casings From Sausagesxe2x80x9d, filed Oct. 6, 1998, is another example of a mechanized method and apparatus for removing casings from sausage sticks, which application is hereby incorporated by reference.
The mechanized apparatus is for removing casings from sausage sticks require a large volume of sausage sticks to be stripped. The sausage sticks are typically supported on a bar by means of a string. The string is tied around the clipped end of the sausage and is looped around the bar. These bars are then hung along a rack and the rack provides the storage of the sausage sticks until they are ready to be stripped. The manual removal of the bars holding the sausage sticks from the rack is a time consuming and tiring job. With the advent of the mechanized strippers, the workers supplying the sausage to the mechanized strippers have a difficult job. There is therefore a need for an improved method and apparatus for unloading the sausage sticks from the rack and supplying them to the casing stripping apparatus.
The present invention is an apparatus for unloading a rack having a plurality of bars. Each bar has a plurality of pepperoni sticks attached thereto. The apparatus includes a support arm operatively connected to a support. A first motor is operatively connected to a sliding mechanism mounted on the support arm for moving the sliding mechanism between first and second positions. A pickup arm has first and second ends. The sliding mechanism is operatively connected to the pickup arm proximate the first end. A lifting bar is operatively connected to the second end of the pickup arm. A lifting mechanism is carried by the sliding mechanism. The lifting mechanism is operatively connected to the pickup arm to move the second end of the pickup arm vertically, wherein the lifting bar is indexed into the rack by the sliding mechanism from the first position to the second position and lifts the bar having the pepperoni sticks and removes the bar from the rack.
The invention is also a method of unloading a rack having a plurality of bars, each bar having a plurality of pepperoni sticks. The method includes extending a pickup arm into the rack and under the bar. The pickup arm is then moved up to lift the bar from the rack. The pickup arm is then retracted to clear the rack and the pickup arm is lowered to a position to allow for the removal of the pepperoni sticks from the bar.